UK cases hit four-month high for second day in a row
Georgina Hayes
·43 min read
Queues stretch along the pavement at a walk-in Covid-19 testing centre in London - Getty Images Europe
12:54 AM
Today's top stories
People who break coronavirus rules will be fined up to £10,000 from next week after Boris Johnson’s most senior scientific advisers warned him that the public’s failure to follow lockdown rules was allowing the pandemic to spiral out of control again
A three-week shutdown of the hospitality industry, a short, sharp five-day "circuit-break" or a traffic-light system that divides the country into three levels of risk zones are among the options being considered by Boris Johnson and his team at No 10
A "superspreader" who broke quarantine rules to go on a pub crawl has been blamed for a surge of infections in Bolton, as council leaders call for powers to shut down pubs that break rules
Comment: "Lockdowns arguably make sense as an emergency measure, a way to buy time and build capacity. But they are no answer to an endemic virus. They are the bluntest and most destructive of instruments. They offer no exit strategy. And, surveying the data from around the world, there is precious little evidence that they work"
The number of people who have tested positive for Covid-19 in the UK has risen by 4,422 as of 9am on Saturday morning - the highest daily increase since May 8, and the second day in a row that cases have hit a four-month high.
The figure is 100 more than were confirmed on Friday. Overall, 390,358 cases have been confirmed.
It comes as ministers have been warned by a leading scientist to act "sooner rather than later" if they are to prevent a new surge in coronavirus cases leading to more deaths.
Professor Neil Ferguson - whose modelling led the Government to order the lockdown in March - said the UK is facing a "perfect storm" following the easing of controls over the summer.
His warning came as Boris Johnson spends the weekend in Downing Street considering new restrictions across England as the latest figures show new infections are doubling every week.
Ministers are thought to be looking at a temporary two-week "circuit break" in an attempt to break the chain of transmission, in a move that could see pubs and restaurants ordered to close or face a 10pm curfew, while socialising between households could be banned.
04:32 PM
Today's top stories
Good afternoon. Here are some of the key developments from around the world today:
The number of people who have tested positive for Covid-19 in the UK has risen by 4,422 as of 9am this morning - the highest daily increase since May 8, and the second day in a row that cases have hit a four-month high.
The public could be asked to adopt a ‘social contact diet plan’ to ration the number of interactions they have in a week as a way of limiting the spread of coronavirus.
A 'superspreader' who broke quarantine rules to go on a bar crawl has been blamed for a surge of infections in Bolton, as council leaders call for powers to shut down pubs who break rules.
Coronavirus was not the main cause of death for nearly one third of recorded Covid-19 victims in July and August, research by Oxford University has found.
The number of people in the United States who died with Covid-19 has reached the grim milestone of surpassing 200,000.
The Australian state, Victoria, at the centre of the country's outbreak has reported its lowest daily increase of infections in three months, putting it on course to relax a hard lockdown in the capital city by the end of the month.
India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours. The country has over a million active cases with about 80 per cent recovery rate.
04:24 PM
US surpasses 200,000 deaths from Covid-19
The number of people in the United States who died with Covid-19 has now surpassed 200,000.
The US currently has the highest death tally from the virus in the world.
Experts like Dr Tom Frieden, former director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, said it didn't have to be this way, NBC reports.
"Tens of thousands of people would not have died if the US response had been more effective," said Frieden, now president of Resolve to Save Lives, a global public health initiative.
04:19 PM
'It’s awful': a night out in Newcastle as 10pm curfew comes into play
Newcastle’s Bigg Market is the party hub of a party city. To imagine what it looks like on a Friday night, add three parts William Hogarth’s Beer Street, which depicts idyllic boozy bonhomie that any city would envy, to one part Hieronymus Bosch hellscape. It is a heady cocktail, beloved by locals and tourists. “Noisy, busy and happy” is how one of the local street pastors, who through volunteering to assist the drunk and vulnerable sees the worst and best of Bigg Market, describes a typical night.
At 10pm on Friday, the party stopped. The North East is experiencing a particularly sharp upswing in Covid-19 cases, and the Government has imposed various restrictions in response. Among those restrictions is the rule that pubs, clubs, restaurants and bars must close by 10pm – effectively a curfew.
As dusk turned to dark on the curfew’s first night, there were as many police in the historic stepped marketplace as there were members of the public. The evening would usually be revving up at this point, with bar-hoppers chatting and laughing over the thumping music emanating from basement dancefloors. Tonight the packs of strutting boys and clattering girls were all but absent. Most of the few people on the street were couples on quiet evenings out.
The place would usually be “rammed”, said Dan Walker, 27, who had just been to a comedy show with his girlfriend, 28-year-old Kloe Wilson. Every member of the audience had had to wear face shields. The strange emptiness of Bigg Market, he said, was “the way it should be for the situation that we’re in.”
Doctors call for stronger Covid measures to avoid national lockdown
Doctors are urging the Government to introduce stronger coronavirus measures in England to drive down case numbers and avoid another national lockdown.
The British Medical Association (BMA) said that unless people stick rigorously to social distancing and infection control measures, or there is better enforcement, infection rates will soar and the NHS will "once again be crippled" as it tries to cope with the number of patients with Covid-19.
The warning comes after Prime Minister Boris Johnson admitted on Friday the long-feared second wave of the pandemic has reached the UK.
While doctors want to avoid another national lockdown, the BMA said recent restrictions have been inadequate and have failed to make any significant impact on the spread of the infection.
The BMA is calling on the Government to reconsider the "rule of six", arguing that as it currently stands, the rule of six makes it possible for members of six households to meet indoors, potentially many times over the course of one day.
It is also urging the Government to reverse its stance on getting workers back to the office by encouraging the public to work from home, in order to reduce contact between people including on public transport.
The BMA said unnecessary travel and social gatherings should be discouraged, while it suggested a "take out to help out" approach similar to the Chancellor's "Eat Out to Help Out" scheme.
03:48 PM
UK: Cases up by 4,422
The Government said that as of 9am this morning, there had been a further 4,422 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK. Overall, 390,358 cases have been confirmed.
It marks the highest daily increase since May 8, and the second day in a row that UK cases hit a four-month high.
It also said a further 27 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of today. This brings the UK total to 41,759.
Separate figures published by the UK's statistics agencies show there have now been 57,500 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
03:30 PM
Police move in for third time in attempt to shut down anti-lockdown rally
Police have moved in for a third time to try to shut down a rally of anti-lockdown protesters who are demonstrating in Trafalgar Square.
Shortly after 4pm this afternoon, Metropolitan Police officers wearing riot gear closed in on the campaigners from both sides of The National Gallery.
The protesters then formed a huge blockade of hundreds of people, before some began throwing bottles at the officers.
One protester could be seen with a bloodied head which occurred during the scuffle.
Others sat down to block their path.
Protesters and police clash at a 'Resist & Act For Freedom Rally' demonstration - Shutterstock
03:17 PM
Police warn anti-vax and anti-lockdown protesters to disperse or face arrest
Police have urged hundreds of protesters to immediately leave an anti-vaccine, anti-lockdown protest in Trafalgar Square or face arrest.
The warning came after heated clashes between demonstrators and officers during a "Resist And Act For Freedom" rally on Saturday afternoon.
Dozens of officers, including some on horseback, were repelled by human blockades with loud cheering and chanting as they tried to make arrests.
Scotland Yard said the large crowds of people are "putting themselves and others at risk" just a day after Mayor of London Sadiq Khan warned it is "increasingly likely" restrictions will be needed to slow the spread of coronavirus in the capital, adding he was "extremely concerned" about the rate of transmission in London.
The number of cases per 100,000 people over seven days is reported to have increased in London from 18.8 to around 25.
A Metropolitan Police statement said there had been "pockets of hostility and outbreaks of violence towards officers", adding: "We will now be taking enforcement action to disperse those who remain in the area. Those who remain may get arrested."
02:59 PM
Almost one third of Covid deaths in July and August 'primarily caused by other conditions'
Coronavirus was not the main cause of death for nearly one third of recorded Covid-19 victims in July and August, research by Oxford University has found.
Analysis shows that around 30 per cent of people included in the coronavirus death toll by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) over the summer months had died primarily from other conditions.
It means someone who suffered a heart attack, or even died in a road traffic accident, may have been included in the figures if they had also tested positive for coronavirus at some point, or if doctors believed the virus may have exacerbated their condition.
Throughout the entire pandemic, around one in 13 people currently classed as Covid-19 victims did not have the disease as an underlying cause of death.
It means 3,877 deaths (7.8 per cent) in which coronavirus was not the primary cause have been included in the figures. In July and August, that number jumped to 28.8 per cent of all registered deaths, meaning Covid-19 was not the main cause of death in 465 of 1,617 recorded victims (listen to the podcast below, which discusses whether Britain's death toll could be set to increase again).
Covid cloud hangs over Oktoberfest parties as cases grow in Munich and Germany
Fears are growing in Germany that Oktoberfest parties could lead to a surge in coronavirus infections, pushing the country into a second wave of the pandemic.
The famous festival which normally takes place in Munich every year in September and October was historically cancelled this year for the first time since the Second World War.
Nevertheless, people will be celebrating this weekend. Alternative festivities - named “WirtshausWiesn” (‘pub Oktoberfest’) - will kick off amid clear skies and sunshine on Saturday, when traditional Oktoberfest would normally begin.
Over the coming weeks, 50 pub owners hope to create an Oktoberfest atmosphere and carousels and a ferris wheel have also popped up in the city. “For us, Oktoberfest is neither a place nor an event. It’s a deep sense of life which is anchored within us," Gregor Lemke, a spokesman for several of the city’s inns and pubs,” said.
The festival takes place amid rapidly rising infections in Germany and across Europe. New coronavirus infections in Germany have now reached the highest they have been since the end of April, the Robert Koch Institute (RKI) announced on Saturday morning. Within a day, Germany reported 2,297 new corona infections, the RKI announced.
A server carries mugs during a barrel tapping at a beer garden near Theresienwiese where Oktoberfest would have started today - Reuters
02:14 PM
Hospital deaths in England up by 16
A further 16 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals to 29,735, NHS England said today.
Patients were aged between 69 and 97 and all had known underlying health conditions.
The dates of the deaths were between August 19 and September 18, with the majority on or after September 17.
Five other deaths were reported with no positive Covid-19 test result.
01:59 PM
Social contact 'diet plan' and the four other lockdown options
The public could be asked to adopt a ‘social contact diet plan’ to ration the number of interactions they have in a week as a way of limiting the spread of coronavirus.
Government advisers are understood to have discussed the possibility of introducing individual “contact budgets” if the pandemic continues for months to come.
These would balance limits on interactions with still allowing people a certain measure of morale boosting leisure and social contact with others.
The contact budgets would be calculated in a similar way to an individual’s calorie counting diet or a household’s carbon footprint, with more numerous, “cheaper” casual meetings offset by fewer “expensive” interactions.
Behavioural scientists have suggested that just as a dieter might allow themselves one slice of cake a week as reward for daily soup and salads, an “expensive” contact could be classed as a prolonged meeting indoors, with a number of people from another household, which should happen more rarely than “cheaper” gatherings like a regular brief walk in the park with a single friend.
Sturgeon repeats call for PM to convene Cobra meeting
Nicola Sturgeon has repeated her call for Boris Johnson to convene a Cobra meeting within the next 48 hours.
2/ Given serious situation across UK, I have also asked again that a 4 nations COBR meeting takes place over next 48 hours. While each of the 4 UK nations will reach our own decisions - rightly and properly - it makes sense to seek as much co-ordination and alignment as possible
Tensions between doctors and government in Turkey as cases rise
Resurgent coronavirus cases in Turkey are fueling tensions between doctors who say the official figures underplay the scale of the outbreak and politicians who accuse the country’s medical association of undermining efforts to contain it.
More than 1,600 new cases and 60 deaths with Covid-19 are now reported daily, well off peak levels in April but rising steadily, with average numbers of deaths now three times the rates recorded between June and August.
Doctors across Turkey wore black ribbons this week to commemorate colleagues who have died, part of protests which also included a social media campaign with a message for the government: “You can’t manage it; we are exhausted”.
Many doctors question the official Covid-19 numbers, saying that although they don’t have their own independent nationwide data, the scale of cases they see at a local level does not tally with the bigger picture presented by the government.
“The numbers of just one city, or the numbers unveiled by just one or two medical chambers are almost equal to the (official) numbers for the whole country,” doctor Halis Yerlikaya told Reuters at a hospital in the southeastern province of Diyarbakir.
01:12 PM
Scotland enters race for coronavirus vaccine with £1.4 billion contract
An 'old school' coronavirus vaccine to be manufactured in a small plant in Scotland could offer “better, longer and broader protection levels” to high risk groups compared to its high tech rivals.
The research team behind the jab, which is to be made in a plant just outside Edinburgh, signed a £1.4 billion contract with the government this week to provide 60 million doses of its Covid-19 shot by the end of next year, if it proves successful in trials.
Unlike front runners including Oxford-AstraZeneca, which have won plaudits for their use of state-of-the-art technology platforms, the team behind the new project is betting on a traditional “inactivated” of the sort being pursued by China.
Experts say that while slower to produce, such vaccines should provide broader protection, especially in vulnerable groups and may be less prone to trigger adverse reactions. This is because they use a deactivated version of the Sar-sCov-2 virus itself rather than a mashup of genetic material from other sources.
Unlike much of Europe, Italy seems to have dodged – or at least delayed - a second wave of the coronavirus so far, reports Andrea Vogt in Bologna.
Italy kept its quarantine at 14 days, refusing to shorten it to 7 or 10 as other European countries did. But most importantly, Italy is using its testing capacity wisely, said Andrea Crisanti, a molecular parasitologist at Imperial College on secondment to the University of Padua credited with helping contain the virus in the Veneto region.
“Today, the active surveillance strategy we adopted in Veneto is being used country wide,” Cristanti told the Telegraph. “Every time we get a positive case, even asymptomatic, we test everybody who is part of the various family, social and work networks of that person. This is how all our clusters are now being handled.”
“By rapidly pinpointing new positives, with the help of health departments, we are intercepting new outbreaks by isolating all the closest contacts,” confirmed Raffaele Donini, Emilia Romagna regional health counsellor.
Unlike Spain, Italy did not court foreign tourists (there were noticeably fewer in popular spots like Venice and Florence) and clamped down on the party scene, controversially prohibiting dancing in nightclubs August 17. Soon after an outbreak was reported in Sardinia's Billionaire club.
There has been widespread adherence to face mask wearing in Italy - Corbis News
12:29 PM
Scuffles between police and anti-lockdown demonstrators at Trafalgar Square
Scuffles have broken out between demonstrators and police at the rally in Trafalgar Square organised by opponents of coronavirus lockdown measures, PA news agency is reporting.
Metropolitan Police officers moved in on the protesters as they congregated near Nelson’s column today.
The protesters formed human blockades opposite the officers to stop them from making arrests.
Scuffles broke out between the two sides next to the National Gallery, before officers were pushed back by the loud crowd, who began cheering and chanting.
The "Resist And Act For Freedom" rally saw scores of people gather holding banners and chanting “freedom”.
Organisers sold t-shirts bearing 5G conspiracy theories and advocating the legalisation of cannabis as a range of speeches were made to the crowd.
Demonstrators at an anti-vax protest in London's Trafalgar Square - PA
12:08 PM
London lockdown: When could restrictions come in and what has Sadiq Khan said?
It is "increasingly likely" that lockdown restrictions will soon be needed to slow the spread of Covid-19 in London, the capital's mayor has warned.
Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said, on September 18, he was "extremely concerned" by the latest evidence he has seen and was of the "firm view" that action should be taken before the virus spirals out of control.
It comes as Boris Johnson has said that the UK is now "seeing a second wave coming in," and that it was inevitable that the virus would hit the country again.
It is expected that a two-week "circuit break" shutdown in England could be announced via a televised press conference as early as Tuesday, and could include measures such as closing pubs and restaurants or imposing 10pm curfews and a nationwide ban on friends and separate households socialising.
The number of cases per 100,000 people over seven days is reported to have increased in London from 18.8 to around 25.
Devolved leaders urge PM to act now to help aerospace sector
Nicola Sturgeon has joined forces with the First Ministers of Wales and Northern Ireland to demand "urgent intervention" from the UK Government to help the struggling aerospace sector.
The Scottish First Minister, her Welsh counterpart Mark Drakeford and both Arlene Foster and Michelle O'Neill from Northern Ireland have written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson.
The letter urges him to set up a specialist task force to help the industry - which has been badly hit by the coronavirus pandemic.
It comes as the leaders of the Unite trade union claimed tens of thousands of jobs in the sector and associated industries are on the "brink of being lost forever".
But the creation of an aerospace task force "would be a positive signal to the sector", the four political leaders told Mr Johnson.
Such a move would show "all our governments remain committed to working together in order to preserve this sector that is hugely important to the whole of the UK", they added.
They stressed the need to act quickly, telling the Prime Minister: "Urgent intervention is now required to preserve capability and avert further damaging losses."
11:22 AM
Jump in France's daily Covid death toll tied to unreported hospital cases
A sudden jump in France's daily death toll from Covid-19 stems from previously unreported cases in one hospital near Paris, according to statements by health authorities.
The health ministry reported on Friday that the total number of deaths from the virus increased by 154 to 31,249, a four-month high in the daily death toll and triple the levels of the past week.
That figure included 76 deaths registered in a hospital near Paris, according to an explanatory note issued online by Santé Publique France, the country's national health agency that reports new cases every day.
These previously unreported deaths were retroactively added all at once, the agency said, explaining the magnitude of the jump on Friday. On Thursday, French authorities had said the death toll had risen by 50 in one day.
"This data catch-up concerns 237 admission files, including 76 deaths... which explains the increase in the number of deaths reported to date," the health agency said.
The hospital in question is located in the department of Essonne, about 55 km (34 miles) south of Paris, according to a separate statement from Geodes, which monitors public health data.
11:06 AM
'Budget cap' means hospitals face paying for Covid tests without approval
NHS hospitals in England face paying for Covid-19 tests for patients and staff from their own budgets after a cap was placed on the amount of money available for tests in the health service, according to information sent to trusts.
The guidance, first reported by the Independent, makes clear that NHS providers will need formal approval from the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) and its Test and Trace service or they will not be able to claim back costs, which will be funded on a "capped actuals basis" and have a "maximum budget".
The document was reportedly sent on Friday - a day after NHS Test and Trace boss Baroness Dido Harding told MPs demand was up to four times that of tests available and Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned a second wave had arrived in the UK.
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, said: "We need to understand the full implications of this change in policy and there may be some merits in it.
"But public confidence in Test and Trace has already been undermined and anything that introduces further delays for staff and patients will undoubtedly raise more concerns."
NHS England guidance sent to trusts, reported by the Independent and confirmed by NHS England as accurate, said: "Testing is now overseen by DHSC's NHS Test and Trace service, and the NHS will be funded for Covid-19 testing services by Government on a capped actuals basis.
"This means that, for a clear set of deliverables, there is a maximum budget, with funding up to that maximum for the actual costs NHS providers incur."
10:47 AM
Prisoners 'unable to access showers for weeks'
Conditions at a prison have been described as "wholly unacceptable" during the coronavirus pandemic, the BBC reports.
The chief inspector of prisons found HMP Hewell in Redditch "could not be safe", with almost a third of inmates saying they felt at risk.
In a report, HM Inspectorate of Prisons found social distancing restrictions had left some prisoners without access to a shower or fresh air for weeks. However the control of Covid-19 cases was praised, with just nine infections.
The Worcestershire prison housed 828 inmates at the time of the inspection in early August, however chief inspector Peter Clarke reported the "high churn" of prisoners had "added to the challenges" faced by HMP Hewell.
Mr Clarke said "little progress" had been made in the five months since lockdown restrictions were announced to ensure prisoners had sufficient time outdoors and meaningful activity.
"This contributed to prisoners' frustration and potentially to a deterioration in mental and emotional well-being," inspectors said, with 70 per cent of inmates reporting problems with their mental health.
10:35 AM
Iran's death toll rises by 166 as cases spike
Iran’s coronavirus death toll has risen by 166 to 24,118, a health ministry spokeswoman told state TV today, Reuters reports.
The total number of identified cases spiked by 2,845 in the last 24 hours to 419,043 in Iran, one of the Middle East’s worst-hit countries, spokeswoman Sima Sadat Lari was quoted as saying.
10:20 AM
Coronavirus around the world, in pictures
A cleaner wearing a protective suit sprays disinfectant at a sauna and spa centre to prepare the reopening, in Hong Kong - Reuters Children wearing face masks to prevent the spread of coronavirus read the Quran at a religious school in a mosque, in Karachi, Pakistan - AP Ultra-Orthodox Jews walk an empty street lined with closed shops on their way to the synagogue for the Rosh Hashana (Jewish New Year) prayers in Jerusalem's old city, amid a second nationwide lockdown in Israel due to a spike in cases - AFP Athletes wearing face masks keep their positions before taking part in "La Cursa de la Mercè" race, one of the most emblematic events of Barcelona's sporting calendar - AP
10:13 AM
China reports just 14 new cases
Mainland China reported 14 new Covid-19 cases on Friday, down from 32 cases reported a day earlier, Reuters reports citing the Chinese national health authority.
The National Health Commission said in a statement that all new cases were imported infections involving travellers from overseas. It also reported 24 new asymptomatic cases, up from 20 a day earlier, though China does not classify these patients without symptoms as confirmed Covid-19 cases.
The total number of cases for mainland China now stands at 85,269, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,634.
09:55 AM
UK ambassador urges transparency in Congo’s Ebola fight
The UK ambassador to the Democratic Republic of Congo has urged the government of the country to be transparent in its fight against Ebola after a rising tide of corruption allegations.
Emily Maltman made the call earlier this week in a joint statement with her US and Canadian counterparts, Nicolas Simard and Mike Hammer, after the three toured the Equateur Province, the scene of the most recent Ebola outbreak in the country.
The statement comes after months of allegations of corruption in DRC’s health sector.
“Affected communities and medical staff deserve transparent and sustainable support,” Ms Maltman tweeted.
The envoys said they welcomed promises by DRC’s government to investigate so-called Ebola businesses, illegal schemes emerging among local elites that see them profit from the millions of dollars pumped into the Ebola response.
Shola Lawal, reporting from Nigeria, has more here.
09:44 AM
Poland reports record daily coronavirus cases
Poland reported 1,002 new coronavirus cases today, according to the Health Ministry’s Twitter account, the highest daily increase since the pandemic began.
The new record comes days after the authorities tightened conditions under which doctors are obliged to send patients for testing. Critics say the new rules may limit the number of people going for tests.
09:38 AM
Pedantry and bodgery - why Britain may now face a second painful lockdown
With the virus once more spreading exponentially, we need to stop carping and pull together to flatten the curve all over again, writes our global health security editor Paul Nuki.
We had one catastrophic national lockdown because, unlike places like China, South Korea, Vietnam and Taiwan, we failed to adjust our behaviour quickly enough when the virus was first reported on December 31. Now with the economy in shreds as a consequence, we can’t afford a second one.
As I wrote in April, a second major peak would be an economic tragedy as well as a human one. Shutting up shop for three months is heart attack territory. Having to do it again in mid-winter would put UK PLC on the slab.
The Prime Minister knows this but can’t bring himself to say it. His message should not be “everyone back to the office” but Chancellor Merkel’s line of adaptation and vigilance.
"We have all enjoyed the freedoms and relative protection from aerosols in the summer, which is possible through life outdoors," she told the nation three weeks ago.
"In the coming months, it will now be important to keep infection rates low when we are back indoors - at workplaces, in schools and in homes.”
"We will have to live with this virus even longer, and that is why my basic attitude is one of vigilance, of attention," she added. "The fact remains: it is serious, as serious as ever. Continue to take it seriously."
Victoria, Australia police confirm arrests at protest
Victoria police has confirmed 16 people were arrested and 21 people were fined at the protest in Elsternwick in Melbourne’s south on Saturday.
The majority of the 16 arrested were not providing their name and address to police.
“We are frustrated that these people continue to put the lives of Victorians at risk,” a Victoria police spokeswoman said.
“While we know the majority of the community are doing the right thing, the behaviour of these selfish few who choose to blatantly ignore the directions will not be tolerated.”
Police detain an anti-lockdown protester in the Melbourne suburb of Elsternwick - AFP
09:10 AM
Czech Republic reports 2,111 new cases
The Czech Republic has reported 2,111 new cases of Covid-19 for Friday, a slow down after four days of growth, Reuters reports.
The overall number of confirmed cases reached 46,262 in the country of 10.7 million, the ministry said today.
The Czechs have seen the illness spreading at a record pace. Adjusted for population, only Spain and France within the European Union have seen a bigger jump in the last two weeks, according to the European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control.
08:59 AM
Lockdown restrictions lead to increase in Muslim couples finding love online
Restrictions on meeting in public have led to a shift in how young Muslims find love, with many looking past a perceived "stigma" and turning for the first time to dating apps and websites.
When lockdown first came into force in March, the traditional method of being introduced to a spouse via family connections had to be put on hold for many single Muslims.
Now a younger generation has used lockdown as a chance to experiment with online apps in the hope of finding romance.
Muzmatch, which describes itself as the "world's largest Muslim dating app", saw the number of users logging in spike by 13 per cent in the two weeks after restrictions began.
There was a 12.6 per cent increase in matches (where two members like each other) in those same weeks and a 45 per cent increase in downloads of the app in the week leading up to the lockdown announcement on March 23.
The app differs from the likes of Tinder and Hinge with features such as religious filters and the ability to add chaperones to chats.
08:42 AM
Tourist who broke rules partly responsible for Bolton surge, says council leader
A holidaymaker who did not self-isolate after returning to Bolton was partly responsible for the area's "extreme spike" in coronavirus cases, the council leader has said.
Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Bolton Council leader David Greenhalgh said the area's high rate had been linked back to pubs in the town and a "cohort of people" who refused to follow guidance.
The Conservative councillor said: "We had somebody who did not adhere to quarantine, did not stay the 14 days, literally went on a pub crawl with a number of mates.
"From that incident which took place over a weekend - (they) visited a number of premises - led to a large number of individual transmissions from that one person which you can imagine then is like holding back the tide because he then became symptomatic two days after they had all gone on this pub crawl.
"He was positive-tested the following day.
"That is four or five days where all the people he was in contact with have been going about their normal day-to-day business."
08:28 AM
Solicitors report 10-week wait to see clients in prison as court cases back up
Defendants on remand in prison are having to wait up to 10 weeks to see their solicitors due to restrictions on contact time caused by the coronavirus pandemic, a legal chief has said.
Richard Atkinson, co-chairman of the Law Society's criminal law committee, said he is aware of cases where solicitors have been forced to join waiting lists of nearly two-and-a-half months just to secure a one-hour videolink slot with clients in prison while face-to-face contact is not permitted.
Even then, he said, counsel can only book two one-hour slots with each client, per month.
The situation is a far cry from this time last year when solicitors could block out consecutive whole-day video meetings with clients, at just one week's notice.
Mr Atkinson told the PA news agency: "You can only spend two hours a month with your client. If it is a paper-heavy case, that's just woefully inadequate.
"A 10-week delay means it is impossible to meet timetables and time limits for service of defence statements set by courts in order to facilitate the matter through the court.
"The state at present is very alarming with the time it is taking for legal visits to be booked and lawyers getting access to their clients."
08:14 AM
Police urge people to stick to social distancing rules over sunny weekend
Police officers prevented a wedding party going ahead on Friday as forces urged people to comply with coronavirus restrictions during the warm and sunny weather this weekend.
Officers in Manchester said they stopped restrictions being breached after they were called to reports of a wedding party at a home, amid increased police patrols prompted by stricter rules on social gatherings.
It comes as the Met Office forecasts a weekend of "largely dry, bright and fine" weather, which could see temperatures rise as high as 24C (75F).
Greater Manchester Police said officers attended a property in Wythenshawe on Friday evening, having received intelligence that a wedding party was being held.
"Police attended and found that a gazebo had been erected in the garden of a property," the force tweeted."Officers prevented the illegal gathering before restrictions were breached."
Meanwhile, Assistant Chief Constable Claire Nix, of Kent Police, said there would be an increased presence in "key areas" around the county, as Covid-19 remains a "real and deadly threat".
The Metropolitan Police urged Londoners to "continue to act responsibly" amid forecasts of warm weather for the capital over the weekend.
The force said it will continue to patrol public spaces and respond to incidents where groups of more than six are gathering, reminding the public of fines for breaching coronavirus guidelines.
Forces in Dorset, where large crowds have previously flocked to the beaches to enjoy the heat, also warned that anyone flouting the new "rule of six" over the weekend may be subject to fines.
08:07 AM
Prof Ferguson: 'Sustainable' restrictions needed if repeated lockdowns to be avoided
Prof Ferguson has also said the Government needs to develop a set of "sustainable" coronavirus restrictions if it wants to avoid repeated lockdowns.
"You can lock down and then completely relax and then lock down again," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
"My own view is at the moment a temporary lockdown - it wouldn't be like it was in March, it would be less restrictive than that - would pull down infection numbers to allow the testing system to cope a bit better.
"But I think actually what we want is to have a set of sustainable measures through until we have a vaccine, not go through this cycle again."
08:01 AM
New restrictions needed 'sooner rather than later', warns Prof Neil Ferguson
Professor Neil Ferguson has warned that new coronavirus restrictions will be needed "sooner rather than later" if the authorities are to prevent the disease surging again.
Prof Ferguson - whose modelling led to the Government ordering the lockdown in March - said the country was facing a "perfect storm" following the easing of controls over the summer.
"Right now we are at about the levels of infection we were seeing in this country in late February," he told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
"If we leave it another two to four weeks we will be back at levels we were seeing more like mid-March. That's clearly going to cause deaths because people will be hospitalised.
"I think some additional measures are likely to be needed sooner rather than later."
He added: "We have in some sense a perfect storm right now of people, as they have been told to, getting back to normal - schools reopening, a surge in cases so therefore the testing system is under strain.
"So unfortunately we do have to roll the relaxation of measures back a little bit and get contacts down in the population."
07:49 AM
Constant supervision of visitors in care homes to continue under winter plan
Visitors to care homes in areas with high numbers of coronavirus cases will continue to be constantly supervised as part of the Government's adult social care winter action plan.
Any facility listed by Public Health England's (PHE) surveillance report as being an area of intervention should immediately move to stop visiting, except in "exceptional circumstances", the plan says.
The number of people affected is expected to increase as ministers consider tough new coronavirus restrictions after Boris Johnson said the long-feared second wave of the pandemic had arrived in the UK.
The plan was published on Friday evening along with a letter from care minister Helen Whately in which she expressed hope the virus would be eradicated from care homes by September 2021.
In the letter addressed to the heads of local authorities, care home providers and public health and adult social care directors, Ms Whately said: "This time next year, it would be wonderful to achieve our objective of Covid-free care homes, resilient communities and a health and care workforce still able to give their very best."
The plan sets out the national support available to the sector to help fight the spread of coronavirus over winter.
Ms Whately said with the prevalence of coronavirus rising in the general population and in social care, "now is the time to act".
07:42 AM
Labour urges Boris Johnson to call Cobra meeting
Labour deputy leader Angela Rayner has urged Boris Johnson to call a meeting of the Government's civil contingencies committee to consider the rise in coronavirus cases.
"We are deeply concerned with the sharp rise in infection rates. What we have seen over the last six months is the Government still can't get the basics right, she told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme.
"The Prime Minister has to convene a Cobra meeting this weekend. He has to look at the science and the evidence and he has to make sure the measures are in place and a clear communications strategy on that so people can do the right thing.
"It has been absolutely shocking to see how monumentally they have failed at the testing, tracing, tracking system that they put in place."
07:04 AM
Family make 200-mile round trip to get tested
A North East mum has described the "crazy journey" she and her family had to make to Scotland to get a Covid-19 test.
Karen Reynoldson revealed how she, her partner David Smith, and their daughters Sofia aged four and eight-year-old Neve had to make a 200-mile round trip from their home in Burnhope, County Durham, to Moffat in Dumfries and Galloway.
To make matters worse, during their two-hour drive there, she was told by her mum, who was also checking the availability of test times, that slots had become available in Newcastle.
"We were half way to Scotland by then so couldn't turn back," said Karen, 39. "I was spitting feather."
Worse still, she said an official at Moffat told her, unofficially, that she and he family could probably have used the 'QR codes' they received to access their tests at any testing station.
"He said they wouldn't turn you away. I've heard this a couple of time now," said Karen, a medical secretary in the NHS. "We must have passed loads of testing stations on the way up there and I can imagine there were lots of people travelling in the opposite direction to us for tests down here."
Queen given payment holiday as Crown Estate profits stagnate
The Queen has been given a payment holiday after the money she pays annually to the Treasury was deferred for the first time due to the coronavirus pandemic.
The 94-year-old monarch gives the Government all net revenue from the Crown Estate – derived from a collection of land and holdings including London's Regent Street and more than half the UK's foreshore – in return for an annual income, the Sovereign Grant.
But estate managers have this year had to agree a "staged" payment process, so far transferring just £87 million of the £345 million owed to the Government for the last financial year.
Researchers from the School of Animal and Veterinary Sciences at the University of Adelaide are working to train sniffer dogs to detect Covid-19 in people.
The dogs taking part in the study are being trained to pick the positive Covid-19 sweat sample from a line-up of samples, using positive reinforcement in the form of play with their favourite toy for each correct answer - Getty Early results also show dogs trained in this way are able to identify infected individuals prior to the development of symptoms - Getty The study is part of an international research effort aimed at training Covid-19 detection dogs who could be used to screen people for coronavirus such as at airports, hospitals or quarantine facilities - Getty
05:14 AM
Can Amazon save Britain's test and trace system?
News that the Government could soon turn to Amazon to solve its ongoing testing and tracing fiasco should come as no surprise.
The cohort of people that will be able to get tests in the UK will be restrained even further over the coming months with prioritisation lists set to be drawn up by health officials.
It is the opposite of what was meant to happen. The Government has made countless pledges to increase testing with the latest goal to reach 500,000 tests a day by the end of October, which would represent a doubling in capacity. Most of its targets have been missed.
By contrast, Amazon has enjoyed a sterling period through the pandemic, reporting record profits and establishing itself as a clutch for many of those stuck at home.
India has maintained its surge in coronavirus cases, adding 93,337 new confirmed infections in the past 24 hours.
The Health Ministry on Saturday raised the nation's caseload to more than 5.3 million out of the nearly 1.4 billion people. It said 1,247 more people died in the past 24 hours for a total of 85,619. The country has over a million active cases with about 80 per cent recovery rate.
India has been reporting the highest single-day rise in the world every day for more than five weeks. It's expected to become the pandemic's worst-hit country within weeks, surpassing the United States.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government has faced scathing criticism from opposition lawmakers in India's Parliament for its handling of the pandemic amid a contracting economy leaving millions jobless.
Relatives lower the body of a person who died from the novel coronavirus pandemic at a graveyard in New Delhi - Anadolu
02:25 AM
Canada's opposition leader tests positive
Canada's conservative opposition leader Erin O'Toole tested positive for the new coronavirus on Friday, his office announced, one day after another federal party leader did, too.
Both Mr O'Toole and Bloc Quebecois leader Yves-Francois Blanchet were "feeling well" and were self-isolating, according to statements.
Each had had close contact with staffers who tested positive for the Covid-19 illness.
Mr O'Toole said he is "very relieved that his wife and children have tested negative".
A man looks around as people wait in their cars at the Etobicoke General Hospital Drive-Thru coronavirus testing facility in Etobicoke, Ontario - Reuters
02:03 AM
China's new infections fall
Mainland China reported 14 new cases on Sept. 18, down from 32 cases reported a day earlier, the Chinese national health authority said on Saturday.
The National Health Commission said in a statement that all new cases were imported infections involving travellers from overseas. It also reported 24 new asymptomatic cases, up from 20 a day earlier, though China does not classify these patients without symptoms as confirmed Covid-19 cases.
The total number of cases for mainland China now stands at 85,269, while the death toll remained unchanged at 4,634.
A person raises his wrist towards a security guard using an infrared thermometer at the entrance to a park in Beijing - Bloomberg
01:37 AM
Daily cases at 3-month low in Australia's hot spot
The Australian state at the centre of the country's outbreak on Saturday reported its lowest daily increase of infections in three months, putting it on course to relax a hard lockdown in the capital city by the end of the month.
Victoria recorded 21 new cases in the prior 24 hours, less than half the previous day's number and its lowest since June 24.
None of the seven other Australian states and territories had reported new case numbers but all except Victoria have reported single-digit or no case increases for weeks.
Victoria also reported seven new deaths related to the virus, taking the national total to 844, according to government figures.
Boris Johnson is preparing to replace the "rule of six" with tougher restrictions on daily life as he warned that Britain was in the grip of a second wave of coronavirus.
A prominent member of Sage has hit back at claims by Baroness Harding that the NHS Test and Trace was not warned that it would need to scale up testing once schools reopened and people began returning to workplaces.
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